Couplets › Humility
From Bang-e-Dara · originally composed in Urdu
Nahin hai koi mein
Koi nahin ke mein
Koi nahin ke mein
“There is no worthless thing anywhere in the world; nothing is bad in the great workshop of nature.”
Romanहिन्दीاردو
नहीं है निकम्मी कोई ज़माने में
कोई नहीं के -ख़ाने में
कोई नहीं के -ख़ाने में
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
نہیں ہے چیز نکمی کوئی زمانے میں
کوئی برا نہیں قدرت کے کارخانے میں
کوئی برا نہیں قدرت کے کارخانے میں
The couplet as Iqbal wrote it, in Urdu (Nastaliq).
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal closes the squirrel's reply with a wide claim: nothing creation made is useless. Each thing has its own gift and its own place, and what looks inferior from one angle is simply suited to a different task. The verse refuses contempt, whether aimed at others or at oneself.
For You, Today
When you are tempted to write off a person, a skill or a part of yourself as useless, look again for its proper use. Most things judged worthless are only mismatched to the wrong task.
In the same spirit
Apne mann mein doob kar pa ja suragh-e-zindagi
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Dive into your own self and find the trace of life. If you will not be mine, then do not — but at least become your own.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge
Lab pe aati hai dua ban ke tamanna meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
My longing rises to my lips as a prayer: O God, may my life be like a candle's flame.
Hope · Aspiration
Door duniya ka mere dam se andhera ho jaye
Har jagah mere chamakne se ujala ho jaye
Har jagah mere chamakne se ujala ho jaye
May the world's darkness be dispelled by my being; may every place be lit by my shining.
Aspiration · Hope · Youth